The Temple of Literature, whose name is Văn Miếu in Vietnamese, is a temple dedicated to Confucius in Hanoi, northern Vietnam. The temple also hosts the Imperial Academy (Quốc Tử Giám), Vietnam's first national university. The temple was built in 1070 at the time of Emperor Lý Thánh Tông. It is one of several temples in Vietnam which is dedicated to Confucius, sages and scholars. The various pavilions, halls, statues and stelae of doctors are places where offering ceremonies, study sessions and the strict exams of the Đại Việt, Vietnamese old name, took place. The temple is featured on the back of the 100,000VND banknote. Just before the Vietnamese New Year, calligraphists will assemble outside the temple and write wishes in kanji. The art works are given away as gifts or are used as home decorations for special occasions.
The temple layout is similar to that of the temple at Qufu, Shandong, Confucius' birthplace. It covers an area of over 54,000 square metres, including the Văn lake, Giám park and the interior courtyards which are surrounded by a brick wall. In front of the Great Gate are four tall pillars. On either side of the pillars are two stelae commanding horsemen to dismount.
The gate opens onto three pathways which continues through the complex. The centre path was reserved for the monarch and above the center path there is a big bronze bell, The path to the left is for the administrative Mandarins and the path to the right is for military Mandarins. The interior of the site is divided into five courtyards. The first two courtyards are quiet areas with ancient trees and trimmed lawns, where scholars would relax away from the bustle of the outside world.
The bell located above the main gate was used to signify that an important person was coming through and was added to the Văn Miếu in the 19th century. The bell was made out of Bronze and could only be touched by monks. On the bell several patterns can be found including an outline of a phoenix, which represents beauty, and a dragon, which represents power. Both of these symbols are used to represent the Emperor and Queen. A bell can be found in all of the pagodas in Vietnam.